It was a big family celebration last Saturday, as Nguyen Hoang Trung SJ was ordained a deacon at St Ignatius Parish in Richmond, Melbourne.
Trung said he was happy to have his mother and the rest of his family travel from Brisbane and Adelaide to be part of the celebration of his vocation.

‘It wasn’t just about me. The ordination was about my friends and family and all those people who are part of my life’, he said.

A number of family members were part of the celebrations. Trung’s nieces played violin and keyboard during the ceremony.

‘It was an awesome experience for me’, said Trung. ‘It’s also very affirming of my calling as well.’

It has been a journey of many homes so far for the Vietnamese-born Jesuit. He arrived in Adelaide as a refugee with his father and brother as a child, and was joined later by his mother and sisters. He lived in Adelaide for nine years, then moved to Brisbane for a time. As a Jesuit, he has spent time living in Sydney and Melbourne, as well as two years overseas in Beijing and Taiwan.

In his homily at the ordination, Bishop Greg O’Kelly SJ said the ordination was the beginning of a new journey for Trung. As a deacon he will be called by the Church to minister to the people.

‘In the vows you took as a Jesuit you offered yourself as a man to be vowed to serve God’s people as a member of the Society. Today it is somewhat different, in that the Church acts towards you, calls you to Holy Orders’, said Bishop O’Kelly.

Having completed his studies at Jesuit Theological College, Trung will be moving to St Ignatius Parish in Richmond for next year while he prepares for his comprehensive exams. His priestly ordination will be in July.

Trung says the journey will continue to take him to many places around the world.

‘I’ll be helping out in the parish after my ordination until the end of next year, then I’ll be off to China’, says Trung.